Chartres

Chartres, is a little town of about 40 000 inhabitants and the capital of the Eure-et-Loir (28) department in France. It is located about 90 km southwest of Paris, you can reach it in 1h by train or car. Chartres is famous world-wide for its cathedral. Mostly constructed between 1193 and 1250, it is traditionally considered to be the most representative Gothic cathedrals. It is built with the techniques of Romanesque architecture, thus showing the continuity and not the rupture between these two types of architecture Gothic and Roman.

This is why Chartres is famous and has many visitors each years.

As we can't travel easily in Europe anymore, we decided to visit Chartres and took our car. From Paris, we reached it in 1 hour, after paying a very expensive Highway fee, 6,7€ to 30km (meaning 0,22€ per km when Paris-Lille is only 0,08€ per km which means 3 times higher than the highway in the north…) But after seeing the Netflix series The Knightfall, adapted from the book by Dan Jones The Templars, we were still very exciting to visit the city of Templars!

Arrived at Chartres, the first things was to park the car, and here again what a strange surprise, an underground parking, "the Q-Park Coeur de ville" at 10€ for 4 hours, which is considered expensive, to compare, if you park your car at the 7th district in Paris, just in front of the Invalides , it will cost you about the same price (11€ for 4 hours). But well, the parking lot is just in front of the main square of Chartres.

If you come by train, you can reach the old town by 10 mins walks.

Here we go now for a walk in the City of Templars. As you enter in the city from the Train Station or the Parking "Coeur de villes", Chartres will remind you its history with its 3 "cute version" statues of the Templars you will find after 5min walks in "the street de la Tonnellerie".

The old town of Chartres is very pleasant, and like a real back to the past, with its Street's name which remind you the old organization of the city, like the street of "Milk", or the Door of "Fruits Warehouse"

You can also meet with very antic doors and Medieval houses.

During all your walk in the old town, until the impressive Cathedral, you will enjoy the Antic Medieval city, with many actual little shops and restaurants.